Okay, let’s bring this Frankenmuth thing full circle. Last time, I talked about food and hotels. As a recap, Splash Village – fun buy noisy. Zehnder’s and The Bavarian Inn – a gargantuan amount of food. Moving on, what else is there to do in Frankenmuth besides water slides and eat fried chicken?
Bronner’s CHRISTmas Wonderland is the obvious choice. Be warned: If you hate Christmas, then this store will probably cause a psychotic break.
What kind of ornament do you want? Frog bells? They got them, and after visiting Bronner’s, so do I. Lumberjacks? Probably have those too, but I don’t have one. Lights, stuffed animals, books, toys, and just about anything you could want to decorate your room, house, yard, or continent for Christmas, they have it.
And don’t dare shoplift. There is a two-storey Santa watching over the store, and he’ll open up a serious can of whoop-ass on would-be thieves.
For those of you staying at Splash Village, Bronner’s is just across the parking lot from the hotel. But be warned, it’s a big parking lot, large enough for hundreds of buses full of single-minded tourists bent on spending money ready to pounce on unwary aisles of Christmas goodness. And with our 2-year old, the trip across the blacktop took many times longer than it could have. She insisted on pushing her own stroller (which is never in a straight line) and visiting the gigantic guardian Santa.
If you’re in a shopping mood, there are plenty of places to joyously part with your cash. River Place, an outdoor mall sitting just above the Cass River, is the most in-your-face. With everything you need (fudge), and lots of things you don’t (lederhosen), it’s a good boredom-breaker. We took our daughter to the mirror maze which held her interest for five minutes before she wanted to leave. We didn’t make it very far, on account of all the mirrors. Someday, I’ll go back and beat it. Someday…
We timed our visit perfectly with the World Beer Expo. Oh, wonderful beer, and lots of it. I drank mainly Michigan beers, but there was a tasty mead from Colorado that I enjoyed.
And though I mentioned it in my last post, you can visit Splash Village for some indoor water park fun. I had a freshly broken toe (I broke it the morning we left), so I didn’t partake in the waterslides, but it was still fun to see the daughter enjoy all the slides and toys.
This obviously isn’t a complete list – I didn’t even mention the Cheese Haus. I know, I know – a travesty. But hopefully this is a good start for some activities.